→ Case studies: HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies
HIGHJET®TDI oxygen
technologies.
Cupola furnace installations at Componenta
B.V. Heerlen and M. Busch GmbH & Co. KG.
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Case studies: HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies
A true success story. HIGHJET®TDI oxygen
technologies.
Have you truly realised the full potential of your furnace? With HIGHJET®TDI
oxygen technologies, Linde has developed an innovative and eco-friendly
solution specifically designed to meet the challenges facing the foundry
industry of today. Take the easy way to boost productivity, ensure quality,
reduce emissions and save costs. Use HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies.
With an optimised design and exactly measured
blast and oxygen flow rates, HIGHJET®TDI provides
the best possible oxygen utilisation in the furnace.
Its key innovation is the multi-function oxygen
injector nozzle. Furthermore, it can operate as a
blending system for oxygen and combustion wind.
Thus, it functions as a versatile boosting tool that
allows for the exact adjustment of all significant
operating parameters. As HIGHJET®TDI provides
higher oxygen content within the blast, the main
wind volume can be decreased by approximately
HIGHJET® is a registered trademark of The Linde Group.
30 %. Consequently, as the wind volume is reduced,
the flue gas volume is lowered as well. In addition
to creating a potential for higher production and
cutting emissions, HIGHJET®TDI is a valuable costsaving tool. It allows for reduced cost of charged
coke as expensive foundry coke can be partially
substituted by lower-cost anthracite. As a result
of better carburisation inside the cupola process,
pig iron can be partly replaced by less expensive
charge metals.
Case studies: HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies
03
Get more out of your furnace. With more O2.
HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies for cupola
furnaces are the result of more than 20 years of
technical cooperation with the foundry industry.
Over 30 HIGHJET®TDI installations in cupola furnaces have demonstrated amazing results.
More flexible operating conditions
→ Typical savings of 5–6 €/t of cast iron
→ Up to 30 % increase in melt rate
→ Up to 30 % lower hot blast air volume
→ Up to 20 % coke reduction
Improved metallurgy
→ Higher tapping temperature if desired
→ Higher utilisation of steel scrap
→ Decreased losses of Si and Mn
→ Quicker start-up
→ Improved tapping temperature control
Environmental benefits
→ Off-gas volume reduced by up to 30 %
→ Up to 70 % less dust in the off-gas
→ CO/CO2 emission reduced by up to 30 %
→ SO2 emission reduced by up to 20 %
→ Reduction of bad smell around the
cupola furnace
How are these benefits achieved?
In their jet nozzles, HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies convert pressure to velocity so that additional
combustion air is mixed with the oxygen stream.
This leads to a fundamental change in the gas flow
conditions within the cupola furnace. In the horizontal direction, the velocity increases, but the
stack velocity, in the vertical direction, decreases.
It positions the main combustion and melting area
into the middle of the cupola shaft, with all positive
effects. The improvement in heat efficiency can be
utilised to achieve a lower coke consumption, an
increased production rate and a higher temperature
of the tapped iron.
Flow meter
Blast air
Flow
control
O2
Tuyere
Blast air + O2
Injector
nozzle
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Case studies: HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies
Highly appreciated flexibility. Installation of
HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies at M. Busch.
The metal processing company M. Busch GmbH &
Co. KG, which can look back on a history of 180
years, is located in Bestwig and Meschede-Wehrstapel in Germany. The company manufactures
brake discs, brake drums, fly wheels, gear boxes
and VB units, and owns a hot-blast cupola furnace
with an annual output of approx. 110,000 tonnes
of grey iron. Mr Schmidt, chief manager of M.
Busch’s melting plant, was kind enough to talk
with us about how HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies improved the performance of the furnace.
What influenced your decision for HIGHJET®TDI?
Linde supplies us with technical gases and application technologies. Therefore, we were quickly
informed about HIGHJET®TDI. However, we did not
choose it right away and gathered information from
the competitor. Furthermore, we gained knowledge about established oxygen injection processes
at conferences and technical committees. Most of
all, the possibility to visit reference sites was of
great value. All these efforts confirmed our decision to install HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies.
Dear Mr Schmidt, M. Busch is a long-time
customer of Linde and has so far used Linde’s
HIGHJET® lancing system for injecting oxygen.
Why did you change to HIGHJET®TDI?
Our production lines have been constantly extended
over the past few years. With a relatively high melt
rate between 20 and 22 t/h, our hot-blast cupola
furnace could not meet the new demand. In search
of a cost-efficient solution that would increase the
performance without constructional changes to the
furnace, we came across the promising idea to use
a more effective oxygen injection system.
What did you expect from the new technologies?
We wanted to increase the melt rate by at least 10 %
and expected a high degree of flexibility in the
scope of the melt rate. Moreover, we wanted to
be able to change the charge make-up and hoped
to reduce the environmental impact. Our primary
goal was to achieve all these targets with lower
production costs.
Case studies: HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies
Has HIGHJET®TDI met these expectations?
Yes, we could increase the melt rate by over 15 %.
Thanks to the more effective use of oxygen, we
can now react more flexibly to changing requirements and can quickly vary the melt rate. The
reduced hot blast air volume and coke rate enabled
us to lower the amount of flue gas as well as the
production costs.
What experiences did you make after the installation of HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies?
Of course, we had to get used to the new process
parameters. In the start-up phase, Linde analysed
our melting process so that we could see that the
system operates successfully. Afterwards, however, we had to learn a lot of things by doing,
for instance regarding the iron, as the chemistry
requirements change with each new melt rate.
Are you fully satisfied with HIGHJET®TDI?
Yes, we especially appreciate the flexibility offered
by HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies. The close
cooperation with Linde also allows us to continue
the optimisation of our melting process.
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Major installation results
→ 20 % increase of maximum melt rate
→ 17 % coke reduction compared to previous
system (oxygen lancing)
→ 20 % reduction of hot blast air volume
→ Lower production costs
→ High flexibility (quick change of melt rate)
→ Possibility to change the charge make-up
→ Reduced emissions (dust, CO2, SO2)
Linde services
→ Complete HIGHJET®TDI installation
→ Oxygen control system including installation
→ Technical consulting
→ Documentation
→ Maintenance and service contract
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Case studies: HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies
All targets achieved or exceeded.
Installation of HIGHJET®TDI oxygen
technologies at Componenta B.V. Heerlen.
The Heerlen foundry in Hoensbroek, the Netherlands, was established in 1975 and has been part
of the Componenta Group since 2004. Componenta
B.V. Heerlen casts iron components in two moulding lines, which are served by one common melting shop, core shop and maintenance department.
In 2007, the foundry replaced their existing oxygen
injection system with HIGHJET®TDI. We have met
with Mr Senden, process manager at Componenta
B.V., to talk about his experiences with the new
technologies.
Dear Mr Senden, you have successfully applied
HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies for about
three years now. What led you to the decision
to install the Linde solution?
As we had increased our production capacity, we
were in search of an innovative oxygen injection
process with a higher performance. Our cupola
furnace had reached its limit and could not achieve
the required melt rate. At this point, the existing
oxygen injection system just could not get more
out of the furnace. We therefore applied the simple
formula: more oxygen, higher melt rate.
How did you learn about Linde and the
HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies?
Of course, we first obtained information about all
alternative oxygen injection processes available
on the market. By chance, an application engineer
from Linde was visiting our foundry at that time.
He was “just in time”, so to speak, to give us information about Linde solutions. We then concentrated our efforts on three processes, i.e. asked
around in the industry, visited reference sites and
requested service offers. What no one else could
offer was the so-called visualisation, a combination of a highly efficient oxygen injection process
with an automatic control system for the performance parameters of the cupola furnace. That’s
what we wanted to have: a reproducible melting
process or, in other words, “one way of working”.
How was HIGHJET®TDI implemented at your
foundry?
At the end of 2006, Linde performed an assessment
of the current state of our furnace and calculated
the profitability of a HIGHJET®TDI installation.
Based on this analysis, Linde and Componenta B.V.
Case studies: HIGHJET®TDI oxygen technologies
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Mr Senden, process manager at Componenta B.V.
agreed upon the main targets. Moreover, Linde
supported us during the start-up phase and gave
us the chance to express our own ideas about the
visualisation.
Has the installation of HIGHJET®TDI interfered
with your production process?
No, the technologies were installed during a downtime of our furnace. The entire retrofitting of the
furnace was carried out within a week.
What impressed you most about HIGHJET®TDI?
All targets have been achieved or exceeded. The
visualisation, however, impressed me the most.
Today, we only have to enter the melt rate and
the oxygen volume, blast air volume and timing
of the oxygen lances are automatically controlled.
Operation no longer depends on the worker at
the furnace alone. Theoretically, the cupola furnace could now be controlled from the office.
This is also a great relief to our personnel.
Would you choose HIGHJET®TDI again?
Yes, we got exactly what we asked for and the
investment has definitely paid off.
Major installation results
→ 20 % increase of maximum melt rate
→ 10 % coke reduction
→ 20 % reduction of hot blast air volume
→ 20 % lower off-gas volume
→ Oxygen demand increased by 20 %
→ High tapping temperature right at
start-up or after downtimes
→ Economic operation at minimum and
maximum melt rate
Linde services
→ Complete HIGHJET®TDI installation
→ Oxygen control system including installation
→ Technical consulting
→ Documentation
→ Maintenance and service contract
Getting ahead through innovation.
With its innovative concepts, Linde is playing a pioneering role in the global market. As a
technology leader, it is our task to constantly raise the bar. Traditionally driven by entrepreneurship, we are working steadily on new high-quality products and innovative processes.
Linde offers more. We create added value, clearly discernible competitive advantages, and
greater profitability. Each concept is tailored specifically to meet our customers’ requirements –
offering standardised as well as customised solutions. This applies to all industries and all
companies regardless of their size.
If you want to keep pace with tomorrow’s competition, you need a partner by your side for
whom top quality, process optimisation, and enhanced productivity are part of daily business.
However, we define partnership not merely as being there for you but being with you. After
all, joint activities form the core of commercial success.
Linde AG
Linde Gases Division, Seitnerstrasse 70, 82049 Pullach, Germany
Phone +49.89.7446-0, Fax +49.89.7446-1230, www.linde-gas.com
0611 – L&P
Linde – ideas become solutions.